Bolt wins but hurdler Harrison takes the glory

LONDON (Reuters) - Usain Bolt delivered on his top billing by winning the 200metres at the London Diamond League on Friday but the Jamaican was upstaged for once as American sprint hurdler Kendra Harrison broke one of the oldest world records in the book.

Bolt, running his first 200metres race for a year in his last outing on the track before the Olympics, struggled for his usual rhythm as he laboured to victory in 19.89 seconds.

However, having pulled out of the Jamaican trials last month with a hamstring strain, he was delighted to get through Friday’s race uninjured and can now go away and fine-tune for his attempt at the triple-triple of 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay golds in Rio.

Harrison, however, will be watching the Games on TV having finished sixth in the 100m hurdles at the U.S. trials after breaking the national record in May.

She earned some consolation - as well as a $50,000 bonus - on Friday with a stunning world record.

After delivering a silky smooth performance to win, the clock initially showed a modest 12.58 seconds.

However, it was quickly corrected to 12.20, one hundredth of a second faster than the mark set by Bulgaria's Yordanka Donkova in 1988 - four years before Harrison was born.

Brianna Rollins (12.57), Kristi Castlin (12.59) and Ali Nia (12.63), all Rio-bound after finishing 1-2-3 in the U.S. trials, finished in the same order, behind Harrison on Friday.
Continued...